Google opens tech training hub

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Google’s growing tech campus on the west side of Manhattan launched a free tech training center on Monday as part of a five-month commitment for its Grow with Google educational initiative in New York City.

Targeting nonprofits and small business owners, the tech training hub could be a model for looping in the wider community to New York City’s tech ecosystem. The learning center will offer free workshops and one-on-one skills training, including for coding and website building.

With institutions like Cornell Tech coming to the city, New York has demonstrated the interest and capacity to build a more robust talent pipeline for filling jobs in the sector. And though there’s still work to be done on that front, shorter-term educational programs could provide a different, important benefit. Free classes like the ones that will be offered at Google could be better suited for developing tech skills that are now necessary for any job – in the tech sector and beyond.

U.S. Rep. Jerrold Nadler and Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer joined Google for the Monday launch, testifying to the importance of tech skills to workers.

“Tech-related skills are essential for people looking for jobs in the modern economy, and Grow with Google will go far towards helping New Yorkers gain the expertise they need to thrive,” Brewer said in a statement. “I look forward to working with Google to continue helping New Yorkers reach their full potential.”

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As founder and research director of the Empire Center for Public Policy, E.J. McMahon is a go-to expert on budget plans and policy proposals. His organization promotes greater transparency, accountability and fiscal responsibility in state government, which often puts him at odds with lawmakers and the governor. McMahon previously worked as a journalist in Albany, as an Assembly Republican staffer and a budget adviser for almost 30 years, giving him great insight into the goings-on in the Capitol.